FIG to License Gymnasts to Help Prove Age

In an attempt to prevent future controversies like the one in Beijing where two Chinese Gold-Medalists were accused of being younger than the 16 years required for Olympic competition, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) announced on Monday.

Beginning January 1, all junior and senior gymnasts who represent their countries at most international meets will need a license from the FIG. This license will include gymnasts’ name, sex, country and birthdate and will be their proof of age for their entire career. Although this licenses could potentially be falsified, it will be much more difficult as most Olympic class gymnast begin competing in at the international level in their early teens. For example, Olympic all-round Gold-Medalist Nastia Liukin first competed in an international event at age 13.